Monoclonal IgG in MGUS and multiple myeloma targets infectious pathogens.

Subsets of mature B cell neoplasms are linked to infection with intracellular pathogens such as Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), or Helicobacter pylori. However, the association between infection and the immunoglobulin-secreting (Ig-secreting) B proliferative disorders remains largely unresolved. We investigated whether the monoclonal IgG (mc IgG) produced by patients diagnosed with monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) or multiple myeloma (MM) targets infectious pathogens.

Impact of microbial activity on the radioactive waste disposal: long term prediction of biocorrosion processes.

This study emphasizes different experimental approaches and provides perspectives to apprehend biocorrosion phenomena in the specific disposal environment by investigating microbial activity with regard to the modification of corrosion rate, which in turn can have an impact on the safety of radioactive waste geological disposal. It is found that iron-reducing bacteria are able to use corrosion products such as iron oxides and "dihydrogen" as new energy sources, especially in the disposal environment which contains low amounts of organic matter. Moreover, in the case of sulphate-reducing bacteria, the results show that mixed aerobic and anaerobic conditions are the most hazardous for stainless steel materials, a situation which is likely to occur in the early stage of a geological disposal.

Marine floating microbial fuel cell involving aerobic biofilm on stainless steel cathodes.

Here is presented a new design of a floating marine MFC in which the inter-electrode space is constant. This design allows the generation of stable current for applications in environments where the water column is large or subject to fluctuations such as tidal effects. The operation of the first prototype was validated by running a continuous test campaign for 6months.